It's not the first time 105.3 FM The Fan in Dallas, Texas has tried to shake things up but this time it seems they are trying to make bigger changes in order to compete with 103.3 FM The Ticket also in Dallas.
For those of you who have been loyal listeners, your morning commute will have a much different sound come April 11th.Out are long time radio voices Jagger and Gregg Henson as neither of their contracts were renewed by The Fan.
Instead, according to Richie Whitt of the Dallas Observer, Shan Shariff, a former Kansas City sports talk show host, and RJ Choppy, formerly of ESPN Radio in Dallas, will be your new voices in the morning on the 5am-9am slot.
I've gotten to know Henson over the last six to eight months and enjoyed the person he was away from the radio airwaves. Originally from Detroit, Henson made himself known alongside Paul Barsky during the afternoon drive time.
Henson would then join newcomer Gavin Dawson when Barsky was moved into the morning slot alongside Jagger and Jasmine Sadry.
When Barsky's contract wasn't renewed by The Fan, Henson was moved into his spot in the morning and the rumors began that Henson was sitting in what was called the "cursed chair" by listeners of the morning show.
Now, it seems the listeners couldn't have been more right.
 |
| RJ Choppy |
While I don't know Shariff, I have gotten to know RJ Choppy. He's going to be a great addition to the morning drive slot and I know fans of the Dallas radio station will enjoy him as well.
The only thing he may need to change is the fact he's a Yankee fan. Once that little nugget of information comes out, the Ranger fans won't let him hear the end of it.
Get ready for a new station with new voices in the morning. The rest of the lineup will remain the same with Newy Scruggs from 9am to 11am, Josh and Elf from 11am to 2pm, RAGE with Richie Whitt and Gregg Williams for your afternoon drive time (2pm to 7pm) and the evening normally finishes with Arnie Spanier.
Whether or not this change works for The Fan is yet to be seen. But, I know RJ will do a great job as he has a ton of sports knowledge and brings a lot to a radio show.
I wish him the best with his new position and I also wish Gregg Henson the best wherever he ends up. He has a great heart and a lot of experience in the radio industry.
Follow Todd Kaufmann @T_Kaufmann on Twitter or find him on Facebook
Seems like it's always the same thing at The Fan. It's a new radio station every time contracts come up for renewal. I like some of the guys on there, but I have a hard time following with all of the change.
ReplyDeleteAndy, you're right it does seem like things keep changing over there.
ReplyDeleteBarsky went to the mornings and left soon after. Henson was next. I guess one has to wonder when Jasmine is going to join the ranks of "former Fan employees."
Ok, what about Jagger. He has been in Dallas radio much longer than these other guys! I have always liked him at whatever station he has been at. Where is he going?
ReplyDeleteI talked to a few different sources in the Dallas area this morning and was told, as far as they knew, Jagger did not have a single offer.
ReplyDeleteBottom line, the FAN will for the foreseeable future have an almost insurmountable task in respectably competing with The Ticket. Hearing Jagger, Henson and Jasmine (wait... just vomited in my mouth) discuss sports is/was just painful. They never had the chemistry of the Musers nor does Jasmine come close to adding the "X factor" as a yuk-monkey that Gordo does. That may not have even been her aim, but whatever it was, it can't compete.
ReplyDeleteI only ever tuned in while the Ticket was on commercial and have to say, they were just painful to listen to.
I talked to someone about The Fan the other day who told me CBS Radio had television guys running a radio station. Apparently not a good combination.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I do feel for Henson and Jagger because these two guys have been in the industry awhile. Gregg will have to up uproot his family which would be hard on anyone.
I just hope they find the right combination of people to make this work.
First of all, it's not 103.3 fm the ticket. It's 1310 AM The Ticket. 103.3 is KESN ESPN. Secondly, 105.3 will never catch up to The Ticket. Nobody ever has. KESN has been trying for years. 105.3 lost the Rangers, lost Brian Dolgin, didn't renew Jagger, Barsky, Henson. I like Choppy as well but even as bringing Elf and Lewin aboard hasn't helped much, I can't see Choppy being the savior of the morning drive.
ReplyDeleteThe bottom line is that playing musical chairs to compete with "true" sports stations like The Ticket and ESPN radio (yes. . .103.3FM is ESPN Radio, and not The TIcket)is not necessariy the solution. The fan has given us variety in their programming, and that is what is attractive about the station. What they have to look at (rather than how to become "a sheeple station") is "what do people want to hear while they're driving to work? What do the people want to hear while they are at work, and what do peole want to hear on their way home from work." Although I love sports, I personally don't like getting up in the mornings and going to work.. Jagger would crack me up (Henson sometimes also). His antics would wake me up, make me laugh, and make want to call in, text in, or I.F. in. This made the commute enjoyable.Then I'd be ready for my morning. Richie was in a rough timeslot for a while as well, forced to speak of nothing but sports, and I stsrted to hate him. Add Greggo, and a better timeslot around the drive commute (with a few of their antics, as well as sports talk) and bingo I suddenly love them. Sidenote: Sybil is hott!!
ReplyDeleteSee, it's all about what the audience wants at what timeslots. . not what the station wants in order to become just another competing sports radio robot.
I still listen to the Fan in the mornings, trying to give the new guys a chance to win me over. But honestly, I don't get a chance as their "weak" radio voices tend to put me to sleep. . ..then I just change back to ESPN or the ticket. . . .at least they have a little sense of humor in their BITS. Sorry to say. . but when Russ marton got let go, his following went with him. . .It'll happen again with Jagger. I sense musical chairs coming up again quickly. Sorry FAN
I've been rooting for the fan to gain listeners and that stems from getting to know a few of the guys who are still there.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I think there are still some things that could and should change. As much as I enjoyed listening to Jagger, he wasn't a sports guy and it was obvious.
I'm sure he was one of the hardest working guys there but sometimes he just wasn't believable.
The 1053FAN Dead and gone
ReplyDeleteMost Brothers listen to KKDA 730 AM talking sports with Roger B Brown. You will get the REAL DEAL when it comes to sports. Never been a fan of the ticket, their views tend to obviously be totally different than mine. Can listen to Newey sometimes and Arnie who doesn't mind tackling tough issues. KKDA 730 AM is #1 by far for the brothers. It's informative, entertaining, offers HBCU coverage and gives different perspectives on issues that the ticket and the fan won't acknowledge.
ReplyDeleteTo those who are checking the comments I want to put a question out to you.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you want from your local sports stations?
Should there be one show dedicated to the Cowboys, another to the Rangers, another to the Mavericks, etc?